Peshmerga, Hashd al-Shaabi clash near Mosul; 3 dead

By Ahmed Qasim and Mohamed Walid

NINEVEH, Iraq (AA) - Three people were killed in clashes on Tuesday between pro-government fighters and Kurdish Peshmerga forces in northern Iraq, a Peshmerga source has told Anadolu Agency.

According to Saman al-Hakari, a Peshmerga captain, Hashd al-Shaabi fighters opened fire on Peshmerga positions in Iraq’s Sinjar district near Mosul in hopes of forcing a Peshmerga withdrawal from the area.

A largely Shia fighting force, the Hashd al-Shaabi was incorporated into the Iraqi army last year and has fought alongside Iraqi regular troops in several recent campaigns against the Daesh terrorist group.

Peshmerga forces returned fire, al-Hakari said, leading to an indeterminate number of casualties among the attackers.

At least one Kurdish fighter was killed and three others injured in the ensuing melee, he added.

Sajjad Nour al-Din, a Hashd al-Shaabi commander involved in the operation, for his part, said two Hashd al-Shaabi fighters had been killed and another two wounded.

“The Peshmerga are trying to provoke our forces by shooting at us and torching Iraqi flags,” he said.

Tuesday’s violence comes amid steadily mounting tension between Baghdad and northern Iraq’s Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) over last month’s illegitimate poll on Kurdish regional independence.

Last week, Iraqi government forces -- including Hashd al-Shaabi contingents -- moved into several parts of the country that remain disputed between Baghdad and Erbil, including the oil-rich Kirkuk province.